THERE'S being adventurous, and there's being stupid. Hatch End resident Avi Bagchi is not quite sure which side of the line he falls.

He is one of three friends who will be travelling 1,000 miles across the jungle and mountainous terrain of Peru in not much more than a motorised rickshaw.

In doing so, the trio hope to raise £10,000 for Practical Action, a charity providing practical solutions to poverty in the developing world. Their two-week race begins in May and Mr Bagchi said they still didn't know what route they were going to take.

"There is a start and a finish but the rest is left up to us. We are only told where A and B are, not how to get there," the Colburn Avenue resident said. "Two of us are on a motorbike maintenance course for 11 weeks so hopefully that will help us survive because other than that we don't have any experience. None of us own motorbikes.

"We are now planning the route, but to be honest, we don't have any idea yet. All we know is where you can and can't go."

The three friends are calling themselves 'The Incaredibles' and their vehicle is called a motortaxi, or as Mr Bagchi describes it: "Imagine a motorbike. Then imagine a smaller one. Then cut it in half, stick an old uncomfortable sofa on the back of it and you end up with a motortaxi."

The team assembles in Puno on May 5, on the edge of Lake Titicaca, the highest lake in the world at 3,811metres above sea level.

They will have a few days to acclimatise and practice riding their vehicle before the race, organised by 'The Adventurists', begins on Sunday, May 8.

The teams will be given no help to reach the finish line at Ayabaca, near the border with Ecuador. Whichever route they decide to take, they will have to negotiate some of the most inhospitable terrain on Earth.

"The danger aspect is a factor," added Mr Bagchi. "Personally I have always wanted to see South America and this was an opportunity to do it in a very independent way and a great chance to raise some money for charity too."